Fire-escape



(NoModeiL) G. F. FITZ GERALD.

FIRE ESGAPB.

No. 536,866. Patented A 'r. 2, 1895.

lNl/ENTOH BY ATTORNEY.

WITNESSES;

PATENT Farce,

CHARLES F. FITZ GERALD, OF WEST MILLBROOK, MICHIGAN.

FIRE-ESCAPE.

SPECIFICATION formingpart Of Letters Patent NO. 536,866, dated April 2,1895.

Application fi November @1894. Serial No. 528.083- (No model.)

To aZZ whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES E. FITZ GER- ALD, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at West Millbrook, in the county of Mecosta and Stateof Michigan, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inFire-Escapes; and I do hereby declare the following to beafull,clear,and exact description of the invention, such as will enableothers skilled in the art to which it 'appertains to make and use thesame.

This invention relates to fire-escapes in which the descent of a personis controlled by friction and regulated by a lever brake; and itconsists in the novel construction and combination of the partshereinafter fully described and claimed.

In the drawings: Figure 1 is a front view of the fire-escape; and Fig.2'is a side view of the same.

A is a cord or rope the upper end of which is secured at a window andreaches to the ground.

B is a friction post or bar which is preferably hollow and may be of.hem-aluminum or any other strong material.

O is a removable cap which is secured to the top of the post by the pin0, and c is a hole formed in the top portion of the cap on one side ofthe post.

D is the handle bar rigidly secured to the bottom of the post, andprovided with a hole (1 on one side of the post, and preferably on theother side of it from the hole 0.

The rope A is passed through the hole 0 in the cap, coiled spirallyaround the post, and passed through the hole din the handle bar.

The person using the fire-escape may stand on the handle bar, or hangonto it,but a sling E is preferably attached .to the handle bar, for theperson to sit in. The friction of the spiral coils of rope controls thedescent, and the device is adjusted to persons of differentweights'by-removing the cap and changing the number of spiral coilswhich surround the post.

F is a lever brake pivoted on the pinfin a slot in the handle bar. Thisbrake presses against the rope and acts automatically, as

the brake handle requires to be depressed by hand to permit the deviceto descend the rope. The brake is operated by the person who isdescending, but it may also be operated from above, or below, by meansof the brake cord g which is secured to the handle of the brake. Thiscord is passed through a hole g in the handle bar when the brake is tobe worked from above, and is thence led upward to the window.

What I claim is- .1. In a fire escape, the combination, with thevertical hollow post, and the horizontal handle bar secured to its baseand provided with a rope hole, of a cap provided with a rope hole andslid upon the top of the post, a removable pin securing the said cap tothe post, and a rope passing through the said holes and wound spirallyaround the post, substantially as and for the purpose set forth,

2. In a fire escape, the combination, with the vertical post, aremovable cap attached to the top of the post the handle bar at itsbase, and a rope passed through holes in the said cap and handle bar andwound spirally around the post; of a brake consisting of alever pivotedin a slot in the handle bar on a pin,one end of the said lever bearingagainst the rope and the other end serving as a han-' dle for increasingor releasing the pressure, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I aifix my signature

